Posted on 12/11/2007 6:38:30 AM PST by Cagey
There are elements of the "poor" who prefer making it hard for governments to not know where they live
On most cell phones, you can turn off the GPS feature in the software settings.
They can anrrow it down considerably by using signal strength and number of towers your cell pings to. Each cell is only a few miles wide, and if you’re north of one cell and south of another, they know what octant you’re in.
Plus, they only see phones that are turned on.
I gave up a landline simply because nobody ever called me on it anymore except for telemarketers and surveyors. I’ve had just a cell for a while...and might get a landline in the form of VoIP service.
With landlines you can run up a huge phone bill. With prepaid cell phones you can't.
If you have run up a huge phone bill and have been unable to pay it, you might have your phone disconnected. If you've had problems with paying your phone bill in the past or other credit problems, you may find that the phone company wants a deposit before providing you with long distance service.
With a pay as you go cell phone you avoid credit checks. You may not be able to talk on the phone as often as you like, but at least you have a phone.
Tracfone also offers advantages to people with family in Mexico, which includes a considerable number of poor people (many of them here illegally). You can call to Mexico for the same price as a local call on Tracfone, and Tracfone will give users an Mexican phone number that allows friends and family in Mexico to call them without paying international long distance. They offer the same benefit to Canadians as well, but I suspect that Canadian immigrants make up a considerably lower percentage of the poor in the US.
True landlines will...but we’ll probably see VoIP or a hybrid of VoIP and cellular service replace the “home phone.”
Cheaper long distance for one thing.
Child support, restraining orders, parole requirements, lots of reason to hide your official residence from teh Man.
> There are a few things that can be done in times of > grave emergencies. > Your Mobile phone can actually be a life saver or > an emergency tool for survival. Check out the things > that you can do with it:
> > FIRST Emergency
> The Emergency Number worldwide for Mobile is 112.
> > If you find yourself out Of the coverage area of > your mobile; network and there is an emergency, dial > 112 and the mobile will search any existing network > to establish the Emergency number for you, and > interestingly this number 112 can be dialed > Even if the keypad is locked. Try it out.
> > SECOND
Have you locked your keys in the car?
> Does your car have remote keyless entry? This may > come in handy someday. Good reason to own a cell > phone: If you lock your keys in the car and the > Spare keys are at home, call someone at home on > their cell phone from your Cell phone. Hold your > cell phone about a foot from your car door and have > The person at your home press the unlock button, > holding it near the mobile On their end. Your car > will unlock. Saves someone from having to drive your > eys to you. Distance is no object. You could be > hundreds of miles away, And if you can reach someone > who has the other 'remote' for your car, you Can > unlock the doors (or the trunk).
> > Editor's Note:
> 'It works fine! We tried it out and it unlocked our > car over A cell phone!'
> > THIRD Hidden Battery Power
> Imagine your cell battery is very low. To activate, > press the keys *3370# . Your cell will restart with > this reserve and the instrument will show a 50% > Increase in battery. This reserve will get charged > when you charge your cell Next time.
> > FOURTH How to disable a STOLEN mobile phone?
> To check your Mobile phone's serial number, key in > the following digits on Your phone: * # 0 6 #. A 15 > digit code will appear on the screen. > This number Is unique to your handset. Write it > down and keep it somewhere safe. When Your phone > gets stolen, you can phone your service provider and > give them This code. They will then be able to block > your handset so even if the thief Changes the SIM > card, your phone will be totally useless. You > probably won't Get your phone back, but at least > you know that whoever stole it can't Use/sell it > either. If everybody does this, there would be no > point in People stealing mobile phones.
> And Finally..
> > FIFTH
> Cell phone companies are charging us $1.00 to $1.75 > or more for 411 > Information calls when they don't have to. Most of > us do not carry a Telephone directory in our > vehicle, which makes this situation even more of A > problem. When you need to use the 411 information > option, simply dial > (800) FREE 411 or (800) 373-3411 without > incurring any charge at all.
> > Program this into your cell phone now. > This is the kind of information people don't mind > receiving, so pass it on To your family and friends. > I printed it off to memorize it. > > --
Well, there’s “poor” then there’s “POOR.”
Either way, you can get a cheapo DVD player for $30 nowadays and cell phones are usually cheaper than landlines.
Thanks for all the info Mr. Price It.
Ever thought of going on The Price is Right?
I use Vonage and as long as they can stay in business I'll continue using them and my cell phone. Verizon landline called me a month ago asking me to come back and saying they could now offer lower pricing. I enjoyed telling the caller they should have offered me lower prices a few years ago instead of after the fact.
It keeps you local to family.
Although my new job required me to get a Maryland number when I relocated from Ohio so it’s a moot point for me.
My wife still has a MA cell number though and she moved from there several years ago.
I really have few complaints about the sound quality. To each their own, I suppose.
I do maintain that at some point the two technologies will probably converge some way or another.
Another reason Polling data using landlines is inaccurate.
I dumped my landline almost 4 years ago. I was paying Bellsouth $25 a month PLUS long distance, for the same service my cell was already providing me. No sense in hanging on to it.
Personally, although it may sound like a "keen" idea, I don't want gigawatts of energy flying through the air around me, thank you. (Can you say "microwave oven"?)
Better to have local sources and fewer transmission lines, some underground distribution. (You do know, I trust, that a typical electric pole, without telephone or cable TV lines, is only a few wires.)
I got one of those daily for about a week...and just loudly said “no hablo espanol” and eventually they stopped.
“It keeps you local to family.”
Yep, two years ago a buddy of mine moved three area codes away across the state and still has his nextel # from home.
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